Trip Report Come Along and Sail the Shimmering Seas!

Hi everyone!

We just returned from our first Disney Cruise and I can't wait to relive the memories through this trip report.

We sailed on the Disney Fantasy from May 20th - May 27th out of Port Canaveral.

So who is WE??
Myself (Heather), My husband (Josh) and 10 year old son (Cam)

We originally had a cruise booked and it was cancelled in March of 2020. I'm sure we all know why! It took awhile, but we were finally ready to try it again.

However, leading up the cruise, I started to wonder if maybe we were cursed and not meant to go on a Disney Cruise. A month or so before the cruise, Josh came down with a virus that caused him to have fever for 10 days and some other symptoms. He had every test under the sun run, but they could not figure out what was going on. Around day 9, he lost feeling on one side of his face. We thought he was having a stroke, so we rushed the ER. It turns out the virus caused him to have Bell's Palsy. Eventually the fevers stopped and after 2 weeks his face was back to normal. Then, Cam and I both got a stomach bug, then right after he got a bad cold. A few days before we were set to leave, I was feeling horrible. After a visit to the walk in clinic, it turned out I had an ear infection. After a shot and a z-pack I was feeling much better 24 hours later! So needless to say, I was stressing a bit. I just prayed that everything would go smoothly and we would be able to relax and enjoy our vacation as planned.

I hope you will all join in on the fun as I tell you all about our first experience on DCL and it just so happened to be during Disney's 25 years of cruising celebration!

 

[donaldtoo]

It was starting to get a little brighter out.
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But it was still raining on us. This was me sitting and praying that the weather would clear up and it would turn into a beautiful day!
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Cookies was opening for lunch, so since it was still a little dreary we decided to go ahead and go eat lunch. We got a picnic table with our tablemates and we saw our servers working the area. Our server, Jose, came over and talked to us for a long time. He thought it was really cool that we had met up and was hanging out and having lunch together. We were finishing up lunch and over walked, Odi, our assistant server. He came walking up with 2 ice cream cones in his hands for the boys! These 2 guys were seriously the best of the best! The boy's faces just lit up when Odi handed them their ice cream.

After lunch, my prayers were answered! It stopped raining and the sun was coming out!


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Josh even got out of his chair! He took the 2 boys over to the slide and they went down there a few times.
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We swam, we floated, we played and had the best time. The area by the slide was getting very crowded, but further down where we were was perfect all day. I highly suggest this spot if you ever come with your family. It was a little walk to the things you wanted to go to, but having an uncrowded beach was great!

Towards the end of that Montego Bay snorkeling excursion (BTW, drinks, including Appleton Rum, were included…!!! ), it started to downpour, and we were totally soaked by the time we got back to the ship, and it continued to rain well into the evening. But, we didn’t care, as it was all too much fun…!!!!!

 

[donaldtoo]

Right?! Cam is so much more social than I was at his age. He makes friends with everyone. I tell him all the time how proud I am that he is so kind.

Our 3, now adult children were, and still are, same…
It wasn’t always easy, but, you HAVE to actually parent…!!!

 

[donaldtoo]

The celebration started with a short stage show. The characters all look so cute in their anniversary outfits.
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The cruise director had a little chat and then the fireworks went off. The whole thing with the show and fireworks lasted about 15 minutes so it was short and sweet, but fun.

I snapped two pics of the fireworks just to document that, hey, you watched fireworks, haha.
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After that, we headed back to the room to get ready for bed.

A fun sea day was had!

Next up: Cozumel

We had the fireworks on Pirate Night…!!!
And, somehow, I seem to have missed at least half a page of your TR…senior moment, I guess…?!!!!!

 

[donaldtoo]

Day 3: Cozumel

When I woke up, we weren't quite to Cozumel yet. I snuck out on to the verandah and sat for awhile until the guys woke up. We did not have to meet for our excursion until 9:30 so we got everything ready for the day and went to the dining room for breakfast which was in Royal Court.

I love the murals in this dining room and especially loved this one which was across from me.
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Can I just say the coffee on the ship was terrible. I've heard the coffee at The Cove in the adult area is good, but I never got a chance to try it, but the coffee in Cabanas and the dining room was just not good. I still drank it though because...well...caffeine. It was very watered down in my opinion. Our server was surprised when I said I did not want a second cup. He said most people drink 6 or 7. Honestly, it's so weak I'm not surprised, hah!

Josh got french toast, Cam got the pancakes and I got basic breakfast platter. It wasn't bad. I also had a bagel w/cream cheese and smoked salmon they had as a starter and had half of that. That is one of my favorite breakfast foods of all time! I just love it.
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I was kind of wishing I had got this french toast. It looked good.

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We walked around a little bit after.

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We had docked while at breakfast so we went up the top deck to have a look.
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Hello Cozumel! It was such a beautiful day!

We stopped back at our stateroom to pick up our things before it was time to head to the D-Lounge to meet up for our excursion port adventure.
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Cam looking to see which deck we needed to go to. We let him navigate us around the ship most of the time and get us back to our room. By the end of the cruise, he knew the ship better than me. This made me happy because he typically always has his head in the clouds. So I'm trying to work with him on realizing his surroundings, etc. We still have a lot of work to do, but we will get there.

We know that port…once on Carnival and once on DCL…!!!

 

[Tiki Traveler]

Thank you for taking the time to create this wonderful trip report! It was so fun to follow along!

 

[littleroo]

Why does someone, always, have to get sick after vacation? I am so glad Cam has recovered and is enjoying his summer vacation. I really believe most kids prefer to swim and hang out with other kids than go to the parks.

Thanks for taking the time to write this wonderful trip report. I hope the next one is sooner than later.

 

[donaldtoo]

I have a big gap in my pictures starting here. So this will be a bit wordy (sorry!), but I have to share. We made our way to the D-Lounge and checked in. We were given a sticker with a Disney character that would represent our group and some towels. We were the Pumba group. We were waiting awhile and Josh decided he needed to go to the restroom. Of course, a couple of minutes later they called our group and he was no where to be seen. Thankfully, he shows up as we are walking out of the door. We were escorted down to Deck 1 and off the ship where the guides from our port adventure were waiting. They escorted us all the way down the pier, then we stopped where they gave us all bracelets. There were probably at least 5 different groups. This took awhile to get everyone situated, then we had to walk all the way through the port and finally made it to the vans that took us to Dolphinaris where we would be swimming with the dolphins.

Once we got there, we were greeted by our host. He showed us to where we could get a locker. We had 10 minutes to get a locker and get ready to head down to the area where we were given a lifejacket. We were separated into smaller groups and guides escorted us to the area of the pool we would be in. The time from when we got off the ship to getting in the pool seemed to have taken forever, but it was all very organized and done very smoothly. They really had a good system going to keep that many people in order. The place is right on the ocean and it's absolutely gorgeous.

Finally it was time for us to get in the pool. We had a group of 12, half being adults and the other half kids. Our guide (trainer?) gave us some safety instructions and introduced the dolphins we would be working with. The he had us swim out a bit and the dolphins swam in front of us and we could reach out and pet them. After a few rounds of that, he told us to swim back to the side.

This is when things took a turn. There was another group on the other side of the pool. Someone in that group did something they were not supposed to do and it spooked the dolphins they were working with and the dolphins darted off. As we were swimming to the side of our pool, apparently those dolphins darted by us. One hit Cam in the arm and another boy in the leg and hit another lady as well. Out of no where, Cam and the other little boy started wailing. We had no idea what had happened and couldn't figure out why the boys would be crying/screaming at that point! That was when the lady that got hit told us what happened. We were told to get out of the pool while they assessed everything.

Cam's arm was very red. I thought he'd be done and not want to get back in the pool, honestly. We were able to calm him down and they had us sign a waiver saying we refused medical treatment, etc. The trainer went over and talked with the other trainer. They switched out the dolphins and then we were able to get in the pool again. Cam surprisingly was fine with it. He danced with the dolphin, kissed the dolphin and did all things, but then when it came to doing the swim he was adamant he didn't want to do it. I told him it was ok if he didn't want to, but that I really thought he should because I didn't want him to regret it. He let everyone else go and then when he saw the smaller boy that got hit in the leg swim, he started thinking maybe he would do it. Finally it was his last chance to decide and he said ok and immediately swam out!!!

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I think it's safe to say he loved it! I was so proud of him for being so brave!

After our swim, we went over to the snorkel lagoon and did a little snorkel there. That was fun and Cam really enjoyed that. Lunch was included, so we got changed and turned in the locker key before going up the eating area. While waiting for our food, a lady came over with an ipad to show us all of the pictures that were taking during our swim. There were some really great ones, but they wanted over $200 for the pictures. I think it was close to $250 and I just couldn't bring myself to do it. The pictures will just have to live on in my memory. We decided to just buy the above print of Cam which was $40, so at least we have that one.

Josh and I got a margarita which was good and we all got nachos. Cam had some kind of frozen fruit punch drink.
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These nachos had very little flavor. Not the best.

After lunch, we picked up our picture and got a van back to port.
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We shopped around a bit. We ended up buying this from a guy painting them at a booth. I thought it was unique souvenir. He hand painted our family name on it also.
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Then we headed back to the ship.
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We rested in the room awhile and watched the Goofy Movie. This was Cam's first time watching it and he liked it. Then got ready for dinner, but first we were going to be doing a fun Meet N Greet!
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Yep, on our Dolphin Cove excursion in Jamaica they wanted some exorbitant amount for any pics their photog took, as well.
I did, however, manage to get a coupla’ pics of the dolphins in the distance, before they told us to stash our phones…!!!
Glade to see Cam got back on the horse , so to speak, and now has those memories…!!!

 

[donaldtoo]

We were meeting Goofy AND Max!! We told them we just watched the movie and Max busted out the dance moves. It was so funny.
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This is one the CM took with my phone.

We had such an great interaction with them that I was disappointed when I saw this was the ONLY photopass picture they took.
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Oh well. Josh is not big on meeting the characters, but he thought this was cool meeting Max.

Dinner was in the most anticipated Animator's Palate. Cam and I were so excited to dine here. The first night was Nemo themed. This was so fun. Both Cam and the other little boy at our table, N, thought it was so cool.
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For dinner, I HAD to try the truffle pasta, of course! And it was very good.
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For some reason, Josh decided to get this ham and cheese plate and he didn't like it. I thought it was good though. He also got the baked potato soup and he enjoyed that.
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Dinner was one of my favorite meals of the whole cruise.

• Ginger-Teriyaki dusted Angus Beef Tenderloin served on Wasabi Mashed Potatoes with Bok Choy and a Tamarind Barbecue Reduction

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The flavors were sooo good! I want this again!

Herb crusted pork chop Josh.
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If you look back to the first night's dinner, that is what Cam's looked like most nights. On the nights when pizza was on the menu he would get that. N was even pickier than Cam and only wanted hot dogs. Even though they weren't on the menu our server made sure he always had his hot dog. Both boys always got vanilla ice cream with sprinkles for dessert every night.

For dessert, I got the Lemon Icebox pie. I loved this.
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AND another sundae for Josh because he's not very adventurous when it comes to food. Cookies n cream but with chocolate chip cookies.
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Love that Goofy’s ear is on Josh’ head in that one pic…!!!!!
Animators Pallet was our fave…!!!

 

[donaldtoo]

The captain shut off the boat and dived in the water. He was feeding the fish as he swam around the boat.
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I'd say this Port Adventure was ok. It wasn't the best, but kind of neat. We really didn't see much to be honest. We saw a few tarpon which was cool, but I was really hoping to see some sea turtles. One time we went through a HUGE school of fish. That was probably the coolest thing we saw. Cam was videoing so I have a really neat video of that. The feeding thing was just unnatural, but I guess they want to make sure you see something. Cam really liked it so I guess that's what counts.

The ride was maybe about 45 minutes. We decided since we were so close to port that we'd walk back and try to find something to eat. We stopped at a place called Cayman Cabana and had a great view of the ship.
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There was a guy right next to the restaurant that was pulling fish out of the water and cleaning the fish right there which they serve in the restaurant so I knew I wanted to try the fish. The fish of the day was snapper. I went with the fish sandwich and Josh got a pasta with lobster. Hand's down, this was the best meal of the entire trip. It was so delicious and flavorful. If you are ever in Grand Cayman, I highly suggest checking it out. I wish I had that sandwich right now for lunch!
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We walked around the port and popped into a couple shops. The port was very small, so we didn't spend too much time there before heading back to the tender boats.
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What a great day…!!!
We’ve been to Grand Cayman twice. First time, we did the Cayman Turtle Centre excursion, and the second time we swam with the rays, which was really cool, and then hung out for a while at Rum Point…!!!

 

[donaldtoo]

Anna the Disney Violinist was playing in the Atrium. She was incredible. I started following her on Instagram just so that I can hear her stuff.
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A quick stop in the room so Cam could change into some shorts before he headed back to the kid's club.
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Josh and I stopped at one of the bars for an after dinner drink. I told the bartender to make me whatever he wanted. He made me an espresso martini. This was the best coffee I had on board all week. Josh is a bourbon guy. He has quite a collection and he inquired about a bottle of Pappy's they had. Supposedly, it's super rare and cost thousands for one bottle. The bartender said for one shot it was $400! Wowza! The bartender also said that one bottle has been sitting on the shelf for years. No, Josh did not get the Pappy's, but went with a MUCH cheaper bourbon on the rocks.

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We enjoyed our drinks then went to the pool deck and got a spot for Pirate night and watched Muppet Treasure Island they had playing on Funnel Vision. Later, I went and got Cam from kid's club and we had an ice cream cone while waiting for the show!
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Such a great show and despite my terrible fireworks picture, the fireworks were great! So cool watching fireworks at sea!! Once the fireworks started, Club Pirate began. I thought this would be right up Cam's alley b/c he likes to dance, but he was beat. He had been a trooper this week staying up late. The pirate show started late as it was, so he was ready for bed once the fireworks were over.

Pirate night was so much fun!

Another great cruise day/night was had!

Up next: Jamaica

Funny, Pappy is who I am known as to our granddaughters, but, $400 a shot…?!?!?!
Pirate Night was definitely fun…everything from dinner to fireworks…!!!

 

[donaldtoo]

Final Thoughts

- The hotel in the Orlando Airport was a perfect landing spot after a late night flight before a cruise. Had we been coming in an extra day before or maybe even that morning, we may have stayed in Disney or Cocoa Beach. I love that we had the option to take Disney transportation from there and they would have gotten our luggage from our room, however, I am happy with our decision to rent a car and be on our own time. It was fun getting down there early and having breakfast and the drop off and shuttle really was so easy with Budget.

- This was my first experience with DCL, but I have cruised one other time out of New Orleans on Carnival. The embarkation and disembarkation there was horrid. We were curious how this would go. I can't explain how easy and smooth it was. Disney has the process down pact and the port was so nice.

- The ship was beautiful and so clean. The cast members were amazing. Everyone was so helpful and there to serve you. Josh said he felt like he was a king. Again, they are always cleaning!

- The port excursion process was so orderly as well. Getting on and off the ship was a breeze.

- I loved the Disney cruise line app and being able to go in each day to see the schedule. You could click on things you are interested in and it would send you an alert when it was almost time. There was something going on at all times. Tons of activities through out the ship, kids club, character meet and greets, etc. The characters were so much easier to meet on the ship vs. the parks in my opinion.

- Kids club...Cam loved it. I never felt unsafe leaving him there. They have it very secure. The cast members there made it so fun, the activities are great. You can also utilize the kids club on Castaway if you want, but we never did.

- Adult activities...we never got to do them. A lot of the things we wanted to do were late and by then Cam was ready for bed. We never got to go in the adult pool areas because we were always with him when we at the pool deck, but they did look nice when we walked through.

- Spa - was really nice, but I don't think I'd do it again, but it was nice to splurge this one time. We both said next time, we rather spend the money on a specialty dining experience. We think we'd enjoy that more.

- I got the unlimited photo package and didn't feel it was worth it. I didn't get enough pictures to justify the $285 price tag. There are def lots of photo opportunities, we just didn't take part in as many as I thought. I didn't use any of those at Castaway because of the weather that day. I might would just do the 20 picture package next time.

- Overall, we had the most amazing family vacation. It was also the most expensive vacation we've ever taken. But being unplugged and really spending quality time with each other, making the best memories made this trip priceless! Cam says its the best vacation he's ever had and never wants to go back to WDW. haha! Josh and I both said as a family vacation, this was amazing, but if it were just the two of us, we'd pick another cruise line to go on. But we also both said we've been so spoiled by the Disney service and it will be hard to beat. We both still love the parks though.

- All that being said, we definitely see another Disney cruise in our future. It's not something we could do every year, but will be back one day. We'd love to go on the Treasure and also visit the new island! And I'm now a Castaway Club Member...yay!! I was excited to get the email welcoming me to the club!

Thank you all for reading!

Thank you for sharing y’all’s wonderful trip, I really enjoyed your TR…!!!

 

[joshsprincess921]

Thank you for taking us along!! Looks like a wonderful time for your family. Glad Cam has bounced back from his yucky after trip crud.

Thanks for reading! Yes, hopefully we are good and healthy for awhile!

Sorry to hear Cam got sick after the trip - that’s no fun.

Thanks for sharing your trip - it was a very fun read.

Thanks for joining in!

We were on the May 13-20 cruise right before yours, and if the magician was the same person we had, he was excellent! He had a great stage presence and even better tricks.

His name was Kid Ace. It was really neat!

Book a placeholder?

Were we crazy not too? I couldn't convince my stubborn husband that it was a good idea. He seems to think we won't cruise again within the time limit.

What a fun time you all had. Your photos are lovely and I am pleased that Cam is recovered now and enjoying the rest of the school holidays. Cannot believe he said he wasn’t bothered about WDW anymore, I think he will change his mind.

Thank you so much! He's having a great time thus far at camp. He goes to a Ninja Warrior Camp, plus they do other things and he gets to swim every day!

I'm sure he will change his mind. He hates all the walking!

 

[joshsprincess921]

Shell was beautiful. I've never visited down there. So, I wonder what the reason was, why visitors aren't allowed to keep a shell? Are they in short supply?

Anyway, great TR, excellent photos, and I really enjoyed all the comments you shared. Thank you!

They made an announcement before we got off that you aren't allowed to take them back on the ship. They said they like to keep them in the natural setting. It was cool to find though!

Thank you!

 

[joshsprincess921]

Yep, the Mickey waffles I don’t much care for, but, those Mickey churros were really good…!!!!!

They were sooooo good!

Thank you for sharing y’all’s wonderful trip, I really enjoyed your TR…!!!

Thank you for reading!

 

[joshsprincess921]

Our 3, now adult children were, and still are, same…
It wasn’t always easy, but, you HAVE to actually parent…!!!

We have actually had friends tell us we are too strict, but then they've also commented how they wish their kids were as well behaved.

Thank you for taking the time to create this wonderful trip report! It was so fun to follow along!

Thank you for following along!

Why does someone, always, have to get sick after vacation? I am so glad Cam has recovered and is enjoying his summer vacation. I really believe most kids prefer to swim and hang out with other kids than go to the parks.

Thanks for taking the time to write this wonderful trip report. I hope the next one is sooner than later.

I told Josh it seems like May is never a good month for us. Cam has been bringing home a stomach bug every May for the last 4 years and then it's usually followed by a cold. I keep telling him he needs to eat his veggies, but he's just too picky. LOL!

I agree...he would love it if we went to Disney and just swam all day!

Thanks for following. Josh and I will be down at the end of August!

Yep, on our Dolphin Cove excursion in Jamaica they wanted some exorbitant amount for any pics their photog took, as well.
I did, however, manage to get a coupla’ pics of the dolphins in the distance, before they told us to stash our phones…!!!
Glade to see Cam got back on the horse , so to speak, and now has those memories…!!!

I could not believe the price of the pictures. Totally insane. They'd probably make more money off pictures if they'd lower the price. More people would buy them. Its kind of a bummer because there were some good ones, but I couldn't see spending that much. It was such a fun experience though and I'm so happy Cam was brave enough to get back in and swim.

What a great day…!!!
We’ve been to Grand Cayman twice. First time, we did the Cayman Turtle Centre excursion, and the second time we swam with the rays, which was really cool, and then hung out for a while at Rum Point…!!!

We really wanted to do stingray city but the port adventure we wanted was sold out. If I go back to Grand Cayman that's what I'd like to do!

 

[lostpro9het]

Were we crazy not too? I couldn't convince my stubborn husband that it was a good idea. He seems to think we won't cruise again within the time limit.

I wont say crazy, but its the #1 advice I give DCL newbs. Its 100% refundable and offers a discount on most future cruises. Sadly, once you disembark you can’t get it.

Regardless, it looks like yall had an amazing time and that is what is most important.

 

[joshsprincess921]

I wont say crazy, but its the #1 advice I give DCL newbs. Its 100% refundable and offers a discount on most future cruises. Sadly, once you disembark you can’t get it.

Regardless, it looks like yall had an amazing time and that ia what is most important.

Yeah that is what I told him. Maybe next time!

We did! I'm glad I finally got to experience DCL. It was so much fun!

Thanks for reading!

 

[todd23]

His name was Kid Ace. It was really neat!

We had a different magician. I can't remember his name, but I would certainly remember it if it was Kid Ace!

 

[amjt660]

While in line some of the crew came and said the pilot was running behind. Finally he walked up with beignets and coffee in hand. It seems as if he waited in the long line at Cafe Du Monde.

Hi
Starting really late but I have a few good reasons as to why

I loved this story about the pilot - T and I both laughed out loud (literally)

And she said " i guess when your the pilot you can show up whenever you want to!!"

Really liked the review of the hotel in MCO - we looked up and talked about it when we were walking through on our arrival day


Max

 

[joshsprincess921]

Hi
Starting really late but I have a few good reasons as to why

I loved this story about the pilot - T and I both laughed out loud (literally)

And she said " i guess when your the pilot you can show up whenever you want to!!"

Really liked the review of the hotel in MCO - we looked up and talked about it when we were walking through on our arrival day


Max

We got a good chuckle out of it too. We definitely couldn't leave without him!

Thanks for reading!